WASHINGTON (February 3, 2018) – Sophomore Charles Williams made a fast break layup at the 14:27 mark in the second half, which propelled him into the 1,000-point club. The Virginia native received an ovation under the 12-minute media timeout as he was recognized for his outstanding achievement.
 
Williams finished with 22 points and helped the Howard University Men's Basketball team earn its fourth straight victory after an 83-80 decision over Florida A&M (FAMU) in OT. Furthermore, the Bison are riding their longest conference winning streak in three seasons.
 
"It feels great to able to score 1,000 points as a sophomore," Williams stated. "The last person that did it was 'J-Byrd' [James Daniel]. I remember him telling me that I had the opportunity and potential to do that so to be able to do it and get a win, that's great."
 
"He's been a special player since he got here," said Howard Head Coach Kevin Nickelberry. "I'm happy for him. No one deserves it more than him. He really works at his game. The best is yet to come for him and this team."
 
Backcourt mate freshman RJ Cole filled the stat sheet with 24 points (team-high), eight dimes (game-high) and five boards while dazzling the crowd.
 
"This team is really resilient," Nickelberry stated. "Like I said before, you can't teach heart and these guys have some heart. I think the tough schedule really helped us, we played some really tough teams this year."
 
FAMU's Desmond Williams split a pair of freebies and tied the contest with 15:34 remaining, 43-43. Howard responded, scoring seven unanswered, capped off by a trey ball from Cole, 50-43.
 
With less than eight minutes left, redshirt junior Jalen Jones connected on two free throws and gave HU its largest lead of the game, 66-56.
 
Florida A&M cut the margin under 10 on multiple occasions, but Howard made timely buckets to keep the Rattlers at bay. Senior Dalique Mingo sunk two freebies and gave the Bison a double-digit lead, 72-62, but FAMU continued to battle and finished regulation on a 12-2 run to force OT, 74-74.
 
In overtime, Mingo and Cole carried the Bison, scoring three points apiece. After Cole split a pair of free throws and extending the lead to three, 83-80. Florida A&M had two chances to force double OT, but both shots fell short.
 
Mingo provided a third-scoring option for the Bison, registering 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting.
 
"We needed to get to the basket," said Nickelberry regarding second half adjustments. "We shot 14 threes in the first half, so I told RJ [Cole], CJ [Charles Williams], and Dalique [Mingo] to try to get to the basket. We got to the basket in the second half and changed the tempo of the game."
 
The first half was a seesaw affair with seven lead changes and seven ties. With more than five minutes before intermission, FAMU's Elijah Mayes drilled a long ball and tied the game, 27-27, but Williams answered with a trey ball of his own to put the Bison ahead, 30-27.
 
Florida A&M built moment towards the end of the first half, going on a 9-3 spurt to take the halftime lead, 36-33.
 
Williams led Florida A&M, posting a double-double (33 points and 13 rebounds). Mayes netted 15 points while Justin Ravenel provided 11 points in a losing effort.
 
Monday (Feb. 5), the Bison travel to Baltimore where the Morgan State Bears await. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
 
Thursday (Feb. 8), Howard returns to The Burr where they host Hampton in the next chapter of the Battle of the Real HU. Game-time is set for 7:30 p.m.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.